Deacon Removed from Ministry

Timothy Cardinal Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, has written a letter to the parishioners of Holy Name of Mary Parish in Croton-on-Hudson, informing them that Deacon Albert Mazza, a permanent deacon serving in their parish, had been removed from ministry, following allegations that, many years ago, he had abused minors. Father Edward Weber, the director of priest personnel for the Archdiocese of New York, read the letter from the Cardinal at Masses today.

Deacon Mazza had served as a permanent deacon since 1996.

In his letter, the Cardinal noted that the archdiocese had been notified of the allegations by the Westchester district attorney’s office, and had immediately put Deacon Mazza on administrative leave while the matter was investigated. Last week, the archdiocesan review board recommended that Deacon Mazza be permanently removed from ministry, a recommendation that the Cardinal accepted.

The Cardinal told the parishioners of Holy Name of Mary that the archdiocese wanted to be upfront, and transparent with the people, even about bad news. He wrote, “As you know, the Church learned a painful lesson in not communicating the abuse of minors to the faithful as soon as it became aware of it. Now, the Church leads the way with action and transparency, with this sad situation here at this parish serving as an example.”